A massive study, involving more than half a million participants, was published today by the Archives of Internal Medicine. It offers some of the most damning evidence yet published about the dangers of red meat consumption. A small hamburger’s worth of red meat eaten each day was shown to increase mortality rates a whopping 30 percent over ten years.

Barry M. Popkin, the author of an editorial published with the study, says:

This would be the Rolls Royce of studies on this topic. This is a slam-dunk to say that, ‘Yes, indeed, if people want to be healthy and live longer, consume less red and processed meat.’

Poultry and fish were not shown to raise mortality rates. So while this study is poison for the beef and pork industry, the results may just cause people to switch from red meat to chicken.

Still, for the sake of entertainment, check out this response to the study from James H. Hodges, Executive President of the American Meat Institute:

Meat products are part of a healthy, balanced diet, and studies show they actually provide a sense of satisfaction and fullness that can help with weight control. Proper body weight contributes to good health overall.